Friend turned Prey
by laughsalot12
Summary: Reveal Fic! Set after series 2...When Merlin is summoned by sorcerers into the forest, he has no idea of their audience...nor of the problems yet to come...It would have been so much easier to just stay in bed xD
1. Chapter 1

**This idea just wouldn't leave me alone soo here it is **

** Enjoy =)**

**... and pls let me know what you think**

**p.s. thanks to Dawn that shines for editing :D **

**Disclaimer: Don't own Merlin...**

**Chapter 1**

To an unobservant person the woods would seem still and unmoving on this cold, dark night, but when looking closely you could see shadows moving through the trees. However, no treacherous sounds could be heard as these cloaked men neared a clearing, where a campfire was fending off the cold.

In complete silence, using hand signs to coordinate their movements, the hunters approached their prey. After a signal from their leader, they spread out to form a semicircle to prevent their targets from escaping, while leaving an entrance so that newcomers wouldn't suspect anything.

Crouching down behind a boulder Prince Arthur, crowned prince of Camelot, observed his enemies. There in the open area before him were more than half a dozen people, no not people, sorcerers. Men, women, and even some children stood or sat around the campfire in front of hastily set up tents.

Having counted his enemies the blonde royal came to the conclusion that the number of his men was far greater than the enemies, but nevertheless he needed to be careful. Against normal foes his knights would have no problems but in a fight like this, where the opponents were unpredictable and had the ability to use magic, caution was in order.

Still, he was quite surprised that the story of the farmer who had come to the citadel to tell King Uther of a gathering of traitorous sorcerers in his woods was actually true. The man didn't appear very trustworthy, but now there were no longer any doubts about his claims.

To the prince's right his second in command Sir Leon, who he had fought countless battles with, had also finished his observations and turned to Arthur, silently asking him for further instructions.

One last glance at the 'druids' or however this group called themselves assured the blonde that they did not suspect anything and that a surprise attack was his best chance to minimize collateral damage on his side. About to give the signal to attack Arthur raised his hand, but suddenly he realized that the older men were pacing impatiently as if they were waiting for something or someone. The women also seemed tense and anxious for some reason the prince couldn't fathom.

Taking their behavior into account Arthur lowered his hand again and watched a little longer. Yes, he was right, the group continuously glanced into the direction of the castle and their anticipation was tangible. They were waiting. The only question was for what?

Considering all his options Arthur signaled his men to remain hidden and to stay put. Sir Leon looked a little confused, but after several hand signs he turned around to observe again and this time he too seemed to be able to see what he saw.

_'So we wait.'_

_

* * *

_

A very boring hour later Arthur really wished he had been allowed to tell his manservant, Merlin, about this mission and had brought him along. The idiot always managed to lighten the mood and keep things interesting. Of course if he actually had come along they would have long been caught as the clumsy oaf was not able to set one foot in front of the other without making a horrendous amount of noise or falling over something; but at least it would be more entertaining.

'_God, I really hate waiting...'_ thought the blonde while he shifted silently to find a more comfortable position.

Another half an hour later Arthur considered just rushing in and forgetting about this damn... well whatever it was they were waiting for. He was already contemplating giving the signal, when finally there was a movement in the shadows beyond the fire. Interestingly the arrival was coming from the direction of the city.

Watching the edge of the clearing Arthur sat up slightly to have a better view of the newcomer. Right now he only was able to make out a tall, skinny figure in the shadows, but in a moment the person would be illuminated by the fire.

The man hesitated shortly before he entered the field, where the sorcerers had stood up to greet him and walked up slowly to them.

'_Come on, just a little farther...'_ keeping a close eye on him, Arthur couldn't help, but feel a certain familiarity. Nevertheless he was shocked when the figure fully entered the clearing, so where his knights, as they all knew that man.

'_Merlin.'_

_

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**Review please...=) **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you soo much for all the reviews/alerts/favourites...really appreciate it!**

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**Enjoy**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Merlin...**

**Chapter 2**

_A few hours earlier_

Merlin couldn't believe his luck, Arthur had actually given him the rest of the day off. Now he only had to avoid getting any chores from Gaius and this would be a perfect evening. He could finally relax a little and may even be able to try new spells.

Upon reaching Gaius chambers he made sure his mentor wasn't in before hurrying through to his room and shutting the door quickly. Merlin hopped into his bed whilst grinning brightly and got his spellbook from under it. Flipping it open Merlin settled back and started reading.

About half an hour later he was engrossed in the instructions for an itching spell... hey you never knew when that would come in handy, if Arthur kept giving him too many chores... who knows what could happen...

So focused on his studies Merlin screamed when suddenly there was a searing pain in his skull, followed by a foreign presence in his mind.

'_Emrys... Emrys... we need you... please come here...'_Accompanying the voice was a vision of a clearing just north of the citadel. Only seconds later the presence was gone again.

Merlin jumped up immediately, alerted by a sense of urgency, kindness and most of all fear, which had been projected as well, and hurried to the clearing.

* * *

When he finally approached the clearing he could see about half a dozen people standing or sitting around a campfire. While he didn't believe they meant him any harm he still hesitated slightly before completely entering. Taking a deep breath Merlin calmed his nerves and fully stepped into the light.

Once he had entered they walked up to him and greeted him respectfully, he even saw some of them bowing. Merlin didn't really know how to react and simply nodded and smiled a little. After the greeting one of the men to his right stepped forward and introduced himself as Neale, the leader of this group.

"Thank you for coming, Emrys. We know the risk you take by meeting with us; however this is a matter of great importance."

Merlin had of course already noticed the grave expressions all of them wore, as well as the underlying tension they all exuded. Assuming a more confident posture to reassure them Merlin replied, "Don't worry about me, I'm always careful and... stealthy..." '_I'm just not really good at it, but they don't need to know that...'_"So, what is it you wished to speak to me about?"

Neale looked gratefully and continued "Maybe I should start at the beginning. The group you see here is only a small part of the community we belonged to, but about a week ago we had to sever our connection to the others." Several of the other present people now looked pained and worried; Merlin wondered what had happened to the others, but he was sure he would find out soon enough.

"At that time one of us made a terrible discovery close to our settlement. He found a hidden cave containing an artefact of old, one we once thought was only a legend. The necklace of Ériu." With that said Neale made a meaningful pause and obviously waited for Merlin to understand/recognize the severity of the situation.

The only problem was Merlin had no idea what the necklace of Er...whatever was, he had in fact never heard of it before. But it couldn't be that bad, could it? Nah...

* * *

In the meantime Arthur and his knights remained in the shadows and watched the scene before them. The prince could hardly believe what he saw, Merlin, his loyal servant... no friend, was talking to sorcerers and even worse they seemed to know him. Therefore his first theory that Merlin had just by chance stumbled into the clearing and didn't purposefully search them out was wrong.

His next theory had also been crushed already as he couldn't really say that the sorcerers were threatening Merlin. Arthur was furious and more than frustrated that he wasn't able to hear what they were talking about.

There had to be a reasonable explanation! The bumbling idiot just couldn't be a spy or even worse a lying, disgusting sorcerer bent on Camelot's destruction. Nothing made sense anymore, there had to be something he was missing.

Calming his raging thoughts Arthur once again focused on the scene before him and prayed for his instincts to be right.

* * *

Intent on breaking the awkward silence Merlin displayed what he hoped was a grave expression and nodded wisely while thinking. _'Note to self: Research necklace of Er...but first find out correct name!'_

Apparently he actually managed to pull it off as Neale started talking again. "While we," he gestured around him, "suggested to destroy the artefact... our brethren had a different idea. They wanted to use the necklace of Ériu against Camelot. Fortunately we were able to... acquire the artefact and hide it in a safe location. Ever since then our 'friends' turned on us, we managed to escape, but they're hunting us to find out the location. So far we managed to evade them, however none of us can reach the safe-place either. In any case no one here, except you, would be strong enough to destroy the necklace."

"Okay, uhm basically you want me to get and smash it, right? No problem. So where is it?" Merlin was already envisioning a little, uneventful journey, getting away from chores and a certain prat. _'Should be fun' _Merlin thought… well up until the moment another half a dozen sorcerers suddenly appeared and attacked them.

The air was immediately filled with a dozen fire balls and the only thing Merlin could hear through the noise was, "Leave one alive!"

Reacting purely on instinct Merlin managed to dodge the ball aimed straight at him, unfortunately he missed the second one approaching from behind. However, a moment before it hit Merlin someone tackled him to the ground. Sitting up he had no time to find out who had saved him and instead cast a shielding spell to protect both himself and his saviour.

That was when he noticed that the background noise had changed, in addition to the sound of chanting you could now hear the whistling of swords cutting through the air. Looking up Merlin observed the field and spotted about a dozen knights fighting the newly arrived sorcerers, who had by now nearly killed all the others. Only Neale was still alive and the attackers were trying to capture him. But right now the knights seemed to be distracting them as they had come from behind and surprised the sorcerers. The only question was, _'What the hell were Camelot's knights doing here?' _This day was getting worse and worse.

"You're a sorcerer!" the person next to him suddenly exclaimed.

That voice... no it couldn't be... turning his head slowly Merlin regarded his lifesaver for the first time and nearly had a heart attack. This officially had to be the worst day of his life. Because next to him was no other than his master/friend, Arthur, prince of Camelot.

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	3. Chapter 3

**Heyy =) **

**soorry it took me a little longer than I thought.. blame university :D**

**Anyway, thank you soo much for all the reviews/alerts/favourites, you guys are AMAZING**

**...and I hope you'll like this chapter as much! **

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything**

**Chapter 3**

"NO!"

Okay, so maybe denying wasn't really an option, but hey Arthur had proven to be quite oblivious with these things in the past, it was worth a try. Using what he hoped was an innocent and confused expression he regarded the blonde closely.

Arthur looked at him in disbelief and exclaimed incredulously "I just _saw _you! You cast a spell not a minute ago!"

"Wasn't me..?" Merlin countered feebly.

"..."

Arthur's murderous glare and the fact that he was reaching for his sword told Merlin that denial didn't quite work. So what next; explaining everything or just running away? Thankfully he didn't have to choose as reality literally crashed into their conversation in form of a knight.

The aforementioned knight had apparently been thrown across the clearing by a sorcerer and had the _luck _to land on his prince, taking him down with him. Finally remembering the situation, Merlin observed the battle field and was shocked to see that most of the knight's had been killed by the sorcerers, who were now advancing on Neale.

Sir Leon was one of the few, who were still standing, but the remaining two sorcerers weren't even concerned by that. They had created a shield around their bodies, which none of the knights could penetrate and those who tried ended up dead, slain by a counterattack.

In the next moment another two of Camelot's warriors died, which left only Leon, the unconscious knight Arthur was currently heaving of himself, and Arthur.

Leon, however, even after seeing most of his comrades die made to attack his enemies again. The only effect of this was that he was thrown backwards violently and the target of yet another fire ball. Without hesitation Merlin summoned his magic and shouted, "**Gescildan**", whereupon an invisible shield protected Sir Leon from the spell.

Surprised by the counter spell the two sorcerers turned and saw Merlin for the first time. Their eyes instantly widened comically and, after sharing a terrified look, they rushed to Neale, grabbed him, and disappeared.

'_Damn, what now?...ooh maybe I should start with getting Arthur's sword away from my throat!'_

Arthur, who had used his distracted state to approach him, was now standing next to Merlin with his sword held to his servant's neck.

"Arthur... let me explain, please!" Merlin really wished his voice wouldn't sound so pleadingly.

"Explain? What is there to explain, you are a sorcerer! Tell me, what did you think you would achieve by infiltrating Camelot?" The prince's voice was hard and emotionless, but his anger and betrayal clearly on his face.

"Okay, listen I am not in Camelot to spy, destroy, or enchant anything or anyone. I just..."

"Then you want to steal something!"

"Huh? No, I don't want to steal anything either... but if I did, it certainly wouldn't take me two years considering the crappy security system...okay moving on…"_'Note to self: Do not insult someone, when accused of treason by said person, especially with sword at vital spots! And ow!'_

While trying to spot the little cut on his neck Merlin continued, "Anyway, I was born with my magic, which means you can't really condemn me for using it, right? And… uhm… ah yes most importantly I am actually protecting you from _ALL _the evil sorcerers, sorceresses, sidhe, trolls, griffins...and well basically everyone who's got a problem with you or your father, which quite frankly means a hell of a lot of people."

To say that Arthur was confused didn't quite cut it. There he was threatening his 'best' friend, maybe even his only real friend, and now said friend basically told him it was his fault all along. He kept looking at Merlin suspiciously and left his sword where it was, but seriously who could imagine Merlin, idiotic, clumsy Merlin, as a sorcerer bent on destroying Camelot. On the other hand it was very easy to see him saving the princes life, and helping him through tough times like when he killed the unicorn or the one time he nearly eloped with...whatever her name was.

Stepping back slowly Arthur lowered his weapon and asked Merlin to tell him everything, deciding that afterwards he would decide what to do. Relieved the warlock relaxed and thought '_Thank god he's not a complete clotpole anymore._' And then he remembered their current situation.

"Uhm, as much as I'd like to, now is not really the time...we have a little...well tiny problem, really," repeated the raven-haired boy meekly.

Raising an eyebrow Arthur looked at him questioningly and Sir Leon, who had by now overcome his shock, walked over and joined the conversation, nodding to Merlin with gratitude in his eyes. Thankfully the knight fully trusted his prince's decisions and it probably helped that Merlin had just saved his life.

"You see the man the sorcerers took with them knows the location of an ancient artefact, the necklace of Ériou… and they want to use it to pulverize and destroy the citadel. So it would be best to return right about now and stop them."

"Idiot! Why didn't you tell us immediately? We could have been on our way long ago…" Arthur complained.

"So sorry, my lord, I was too busy with staying alive, it won't happen again... prat." replied Merlin mockingly, getting a swat on the head for his effort.

Arthur and Leon then rushed to their unconscious comrade, picked him up and carried his weight together, turning to leave the clearing. Merlin, who was a little stunned by their prompt reaction, remained where he stood and watched them go.

**"**_**Mer**_**lin!"**

Startled, Merlin sprung into action and followed the three out of the clearing, nearly instantly stumbling over a tree root.

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**Review ? pleease =)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hellooooo, I know I'm a little late...soooo sorry about that, was just too busy and too tired to write :D But anyway here is the next chapter for you and I hope you enjoy it!**

**And again thank you for all the reviews, reeeally appreciate it :D **

**(unbeta'd, sorry for any mistakes =) )**

**Disclaimer: don't own anything**

**Chapter 4**

_Back at the castle_

An hour later Arthur, Merlin and the two knights entered the castle through the main gate; upon arriving Arthur immediately sent one of the guards to inform his father of his return and ordered two others to take the injured knight to Gaius.

Arthur, Sir Leon and Merlin walked to the throne room and quietly concocted a safer version of the actual events. Unfortunately they couldn't tell Uther that Merlin had joined them in the castle, as various people had seen them enter the citadel together. However, no-one would question that they had met the servant, 'who was collecting herbs', on their way back.

To say that Merlin was relieved would be a massive understatement; he was so glad Arthur had decided to trust him…well for now. Arthur on the other hand felt torn, he neither wanted to have to lie to his father nor to betray Merlin and subsequently condemn him to death. Thankfully he managed to occupy his thoughts otherwise at the moment, namely with the impending attack on Camelot.

When the three of them finally reached the throne room Uther was already waiting impatiently.

"Arthur! What happened?" he demanded to know promptly.

Exchanging a quick look with Merlin, Arthur turned to his father and started to explain.

"The sorcerers, who have been brought to our attention, where indeed hiding nearby. We managed to prepare a trap, but before we could act a third party intervened. Another group of sorcerers ambushed our targets, so we then ambushed the...ambushing sorcerers, after they had taken care of nearly all the others. However, after their initial surprise two of them shielded themselves with magic and eliminated our comrades one by one. We had no chance." Looking crushed the prince made a meaningful pause before continuing. "Sir Leon, Sir Tristan and I only survived, because the sorcerers asked us to deliver a message."

"What message?"

"Basically the sorcerers told us that they were about to find a device with which they would be able to destroy Camelot, the so-called necklace of Ériu." The very moment Arthur had spoken that name Gaius, who was standing close to the king, gasped loudly and paled considerably, whereupon the entire court looked at him.

"Gaius? You do know what this device is?" questioned the worried king.

After collecting himself and hiding his evident fear the normally composed physician answered "Yes Sire, I do. The necklace of Ériu is rumoured to be a device with the power of draining every magical being in a perimeter of fifty miles and more. It stores this energy, which then can be released either all at once or partially. The destructive power is immense, Camelot wouldn't stand a chance."

Upon hearing this Uther puffed out his chest and said confidently "Well, then it is no threat to my kingdom, as there are no sorcerers anymore, not in my territory."

Unconsciously Arthur looked at Merlin and considered if maybe he had made the wrong choice. What if there were more like him? What if their power alone could devastate Camelot? But when he was just about to speak Merlin turned to look at him and seeing his manservant's pleading, scared look, Arthur kept his mouth shut...

In the meantime Gaius had a similar problem. How the hell should he tell his magic-hating king that there were indeed still creatures, beings with magic in the country, and close enough to the city to pulverize the citadel? And all that without starting another purge...sometimes he really hated his job. Why did he always have to be the one to convey the bad news...?

"My lord, I fear I have to correct you; there may not be any sorcerers or druids nearby, but unfortunately the magical beasts, which still roam the woods, possess magic. Additionally it is possible to 'collect' the power elsewhere; therefore it is not necessary for them to charge the device close to Camelot." That being said one could watch Uther's confidence decrease a little, before he whirled around to face his son and ordered "Arthur, take a dozen knights, find this necklace and destroy it!"

Only an hour later, after packing and assembling the knights, Arthur, Merlin, Leon and eleven other knights mounted their horses and cantered out of Camelot. Not that they had any idea where to go, but it certainly looked impressive.

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**Review pls :D**

**...and I wasn't really sure how big Camelot is supposed to be, so if anyone has an idea pls let me know and I will change the range of the necklace accordingly...(cause 50 miles...ahh I don't know)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you for all the reviews, alerts and favourites, love you all :D**

**to Jade: thank you =) and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much, I give my best!**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own anything**

**Chapter 5**

This was so pointless…

Count on the king to send his knights on a completely foolish mission, "Find the necklace... destroy the necklace…" as if they had any idea where to look. Now having spent countless hours roaming the woods, the sorcerers had been hiding in; it was safe to say that they were not there anymore. What a shocking surprise!

However, Arthur knew it would be a waste of time to return to the citadel, because Uther would just send them out again. Therefore the prince thought it was time to change the searching method from running through the woods aimlessly to a slightly different approach. Turning to look at Merlin, Arthur considered his new idea thoroughly, but really what other option was there? And what better way to prove his friend's loyalty than by 'testing' him?

_'So, here goes nothing...'_

"Merlin," Arthur barked while distancing himself from the other knights.

The tired looking servant, who was sitting on a tree root, looked up at his master exasperatedly with his expression clearly saying, 'Forget it, I'm not going to stand up.' Another shouted order and several glares later, Merlin finally got up slowly and walked, or rather stumbled, over to an annoyed Arthur.

Upon reaching the prince he said, "Yes, Sire?" Which could be translated to 'What do you want now, prat?'

"Well I was thinking…" stopping Merlin's retort with a raised hand before he could even voice it, he continued, "that maybe you could… do something…"

"DO something? Okay, do you want me to…cook?" asked Merlin uncertainly.

"Cook? Why would I want you to cook? You can't cook!"

"Uhm then maybe I could prepare the camp for the night…? Or I could…"

"Merlin, shut up! I'm taking about… using magic to find the device!" exclaimed Arthur after lowering his voice.

"Oh… ooooh… really?" and there was his stupid grin.

"Yes, Merlin really; so is there something you can do or not?"

"Yah, I mean I can try, there's surely a spell or so… just give me a minute to think."

_'I'm so going to regret this…'_

* * *

After more than a few minutes Merlin actually came up with something that could work. Excusing himself to go 'fetch fire wood' he signaled Arthur to stop the knights from going into his direction before disappearing into the woods.

Okay, this had to work, not only to find the dumb thing, but also to show Arthur that magic can be used for good. And also a little bit because he didn't want to look like a complete idiot in front of his prince.

He walked to a small pond, which was luckily close by and focused on the spell he had put together. Merlin then raised his hand over the water and said "**ic ****bihófian**** I ****ábeþece sé** **healswriða ****sylfum**** Ériu**" hoping for the best.

And no, he was not completely surprised when it actually worked on the first try!

Pictures started to appear on the surface of the water showing landscapes from a bird's perspective, starting from where they were right now continuing to the far north to a great mountain range laced with caves and surrounded by forests. Then it zoomed onto one cave in particular, where he could just make out the glint of the sun being reflected by…well something shiny. This had to be the necklace!

But the real question was how long it was going to stay there. He really hoped Neale would be able to delay them or even better not tell them at all. Unfortunately that was very unlikely, especially if the sorcerers used magic. (Insert shocked gasp here.)

So instead of taking his time to congratulate himself on managing the spell so promptly Merlin ran back to Arthur to tell him the good news. Or he would have told him if there were not a dozen knights surrounding him. Okay, what now? When he finally got Arthur's attention he started to gesture wildly to convey his message, which of course didn't really work out. Instead Merlin alerted the knights to his return, which then led to a lot of confused looks and questioning glances.

Feeling the need to explain himself and to get them to advance into the right direction Merlin exclaimed "I found… footprints." Yeah and that wasn't strange at all, spotting something a dozen of them were unable to see… "Under some bushes after I… fell?" giving his best innocent expression Merlin just hoped those were some of the daft knights.

Arthur only rolled his eyes in exasperation and asked him to show him the prints, making sure that only SIr Leon stood close enough to actually see something as Merlin led him to some bushes. Bending down the blonde brushed the bushes aside to inspect the 'prints', and after Merlin pointed north he stood again, and confirmed that there really was something before leading the way.

At least now they had an idea where to go or ride.

* * *

In the meantime in Camelot the atmosphere was somber. The news of this new threat had spread fast and the people were scared. All hoping that their prince would succeed in his mission.

In the physician's chambers, however, different problems arouse. Sir Tristan, the knight who had been injured during the fight with the sorcerers, was beginning to come to. Normally that would be good, but in this case not so much, because the moment he woke up he rushed to the throne room. And upon bursting into the room he practically screamed at the king, "He's a sorcerer! Merlin's a sorcerer!"

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**Let me know what you think =) **

******ic ****bihófian**** I ****ábeþece sé** **healswriða ****sylfum****Ériu= I need to find the necklace of É.**

******p.s.: my spells are not going to be correct old-english ever xD I just put them together as I go... so yeah...just wanted to tell you that :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**Helloo, I'm soo so sorry for the wait, unfortunately I have/had exams and didn't have time to write anything, but don't worry tomorrow is my last exam and then I'll update sooner...promise!**

**So now after tricking FF I finally managed to upload this file ( is it just me or is it not working properly again? )**

**Anyway, thanks for all the lovely reviews =) glad you all like the story so far and I hope you'll like this chapter as much...personally I don't ^^**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 6**

Endless hours spent following 'footprints' had finally led them to the area in Merlin's vision. Now they only had to find the right cave, which wasn't that easy as everything looked a little different from this perspective. And it wasn't really helping that Arthur was getting more and more irritated. Was it Merlin's fault that it was raining and that they were soaking wet? No! He only had made it rain once and that was by accident.

Anyway, why should he be responsible for doing everything? Now, that the party was in the right area, the knights could surely find a trail or something. But nah the knights were far too frail to run around in the rain, searching for tracks, instead they were all huddled close to a small fire, resting. Merlin and Arthur however, were currently walking, or stumbling in Merlin's case, through the forest looking for the cave.

Another hour passed before Merlin finally recognized something.

"That's the tree!" he suddenly exclaimed excitedly while pointing to a tree, which was rather askew and looked like it would fall over with the next gust of wind. Arthur only stared at Merlin doubtfully, as he had already mistaken several trees for The Tree.

"I'm sure; really… this time. The cave should be right behind this boulder, on the left of the crooked tree." Rushing forward he practically ran towards the boulder and disappeared around the corner. "It's here!"

Arthur sighed with relieve and followed him to the cave's entrance. Standing beside his manservant he looked into the dark cave and wondered why these things were always hidden in a creepy hideout… pushing his thoughts aside Arthur walked towards the cave and entered it with Merlin by his side.

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_Camelot_

Uther was seething, after Sir Tristan's revelation he had immediately ordered a group of knights to follow Arthur's party and bring back that boy. Only for them to return barely two hours later telling him that the party was gone. There was no trace of them in the area anymore; the heavy rain had annihilated their prints. Additionally no-one had an idea where they could have gone. It was a disaster, the crowned prince of Camelot in the hands of a sorcerer.

For all they knew the knights and... Arthur could already be dead. No, he had to believe in his son's skills, there was no way he would have lost a fight against that skinny, idiotic bastard.

The only thing the king couldn't understand was why his son hadn't told him about his discovery, Tristan insisted that he must have seen the magic… oh dear god, he was enchanted! Yes, that had to be it; Arthur was under some sort of spell!

The sorcerer most likely planned to infiltrate Camelot and to use his son for…well something. (Uther conveniently forgot that Merlin had spent the past two years living in Camelot.) Completely satisfied by his explanation the king thought of something else and narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Turning to his guards/knights he barked an order.

"Search the boy's chamber, tear them apart if you have to and get Gaius."

* * *

Only moments later Merlin froze and realized that he had made a big mistake. He had forgotten the most basic rule when it came to locator spells; they NEVER worked on items created with magic, unless the owners granted it. _'So much for impressing Arthur… I basically set up the shields saying 'This way to the trap, please' …He'll never let me forget this.'_

After concentrating he could feel the presence of the two sorcerers standing in the shadows. Trying to get the prince to safety he whirled around and shouted, "Arthur run! It's a trap." But it was already too late, one of the sorcerers muttered a binding spell and Arthur froze in his tracks, unable to move; while the second one activated the amulet and targeted Merlin.

The ruby, in the center of the intricate pattern of intertwined silver strands in form of a Celtic symbol, started glowing. Merlin could immediately feel his strength/magic leaving him. It felt as if he was being torn open and his very soul was bared to the world. And it hurt…a lot. Falling to his knees he could hear Arthur yelling at him to fight back, but he was too preoccupied with the pain. And even if he could think of a spell he highly doubted that it would work, not with the small amount of magic he still had. So instead, Merlin cast a minor shielding spell on Arthur, to at least try to protect him. And before he blacked out he just thought _'Never trust a spell that works immediately…'_

In the meantime Arthur was panicking he had no idea what to do, Merlin was clearly in pain and he could do nothing to help him, hell he couldn't even move… and then there still were the two sorcerers. Struggling in vain against the spell he glared at them murderously, which only made them smirk.

Ten tense minutes later the ruby stopped glowing and one of them pocketed the amulet carefully.

"Impressive. Your little pet warlock is stronger than he looks, when we used this on Neale it barely took a minute to take all his power. Not that it really matters." Approaching Arthur they both grinned menacingly "Say goodbye to your citadel, my lord, because tomorrow it won't exist anymore…not that you will actually live long enough to see it. **Forbærne**."


	7. Chapter 7

**Soo, for all your lovely reviews and cause I let you wait so long the last time, here's the next chapter...=) **

**Enjoy!**

**( still unbeta'd - Sorry for any mistakes ^^)**

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything**

**Chapter 7**

Not able to move Arthur watched as the fire ball approached him, only to close his eyes in the last possible moment, waiting for it to kill him. Waiting and waiting…several minutes later Arthur was getting annoyed, where they only playing with him? Did they want to show him how it felt to know you're about to die and that there was nothing you could do about it? Fed up he reopened his eyes to see what the hell was taking them so long. But what he saw wasn't really what he had expected.

Raising his eyebrows in disbelief Arthur observed the scene before him. Merlin was still lying on the ground, but so was the sorcerer, who had just tried to kill him. The other sorcerer was kneeling next to his companion and seemed to be checking his breathing. Although, even from his position he could see that the others neck was twisted in an unnatural angle.

That was when Arthur realized something else, he could move! He was no longer bound by the enchantment. Seeing the remaining sorcerer's distraction Arthur silently took hold of his sword and unsheathed it. Even with the sword in his hand he knew his chances weren't the best, but maybe whatever had killed his attacker would help him against the second one.

"What did you do?" shouted the sorcerer and finally looked up at the prince. "How did you reflect the energy of the attack? You have no magic, and we took your little _friend's _power. He shouldn't have been able to cast a spell while the necklace drained him. It's just impossible."

Arthur was asking himself the same question, but then again Merlin had already surprised them with the sheer amount of his power, so how would they or anyone else for that matter know his capabilities. So instead of answering he rushed forward and raised his sword to strike, but before he could reach his target the man disappeared in a gust of wind, only his last words lingered behind, echoing through the cave.

"Camelot will pay for her crimes."

Cursing the prince sheathed his weapon and went to Merlin's side, checking his friend's condition. While there seemed to be no external injuries he was deathly pale and unmoving, at least his breathing was normal. Deciding that it was safe enough to move him Arthur pulled him up, threw him over his shoulder and started walking back to the camp, leaving the cave behind.

* * *

_Camelot_

Gaius was in his chambers when the door burst open and three knights rushed in. While two of them immediately went through to Merlin's room and begun to turn it upside down, Sir Tristan, who apparently had become the king's new trusted knight, stayed behind and told Gaius that the king wanted to see him. The physician simply nodded, having already expected Uther's summoning, and left to go to the throne room.

Upon arriving there he took a moment to compose himself before entering it. Bowing to the king Gaius prepared himself for his suspicious questions and his baseless accusations.

"Ah, Gaius, there you are. Maybe you could help me with a little predicament. I just can't seem to get my head around something. You see, when I think back I can recall a lot of incidences when your…ward was accused of magic. For example, Aredian, he accused the boy of sorcery, and Merlin even confessed once, but interestingly enough every time he was saved by someone or by new revelations. Besides, my son protected him most of those times."

"Sire, I fear I do not understand what you're implying…"

"I'm implying that the sorcerer must have begun to weave his spell from the very moment he entered this castle; slowly bringing my son under his control to achieve his sinister goals. Which leaves me with one question: Did you know?" standing up threateningly Uther continued. "Did you know that there was a sorcerer in my castle? Did you know that my son was being enchanted?"

…

"My Lord, I can assure you that I had no…"

"Don't you dare lie to me, Gaius. I trusted you, all these years; I spared your life during the purge, because you swore an oath to renounce magic in all its forms, and now I find that you house a sorcerer in your chambers. How could that ever be a coincidence? You betrayed my trust and you will pay the consequences. Guards!"

…and with that the physician was led out of the throne room, right into a dusty dungeon cell.

* * *

When Arthur finally came to the camp Merlin was getting quite heavy, so he just let him fall to the ground unceremonously. The knights promptly surrounded them and wanted to know what had happened. Giving them a short, slightly different recounting of the occurrences Arthur ordered them to break up the camp and to return to Camelot.

Hopefully in time to prevent the worst from happening.

* * *

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**...and don't worry, how Arthur was saved exactly will be explained in a later chapter :D**


	8. Chapter 8

**Annnd chapter 8 is here...again unbeta'd (is docx working? don't think so... can't send it to my lovely beta reader, Dawn that shines,... sorry for any mistakes :D)**

**Again thank you for all the great reviews and alerts/favourites, really appreciate your encouragements...**

**hope you'll like this chapter as well**

**Enjoy =) **

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything...**

**Chapter 8**

When the search party returned to Camelot it was already midday. Arthur, who had been afraid of what he would find if he returned home, was relieved to see the citadel unharmed from afar. Now they only had to stop the sorcerer from achieving his goal and all would be well.

Unfortunately there best shot at winning was currently out of it and showed no signs of recovering. His manservant, Merlin, was lying sideways on the back of his horse and just wouldn't wake up. And yes Arthur had tried everything…from throwing water at him to slapping him in the face. Nothing had worked.

'Hopefully Gaius will know what to do' Arthur thought while they rode into the courtyard. Dismounting from his horse, he wasn't really prepared for what happened next. The moment his feet hit the ground Arthur was tackled by several of the knights in the courtyard and pinned to the ground. Unable to move yet again he shouted indignantly and demanded to be set free.

Sir Leon and the knight, who had accompanied him, rushed forward to help their prince only to be stopped by Sir Tristan, who told them that they were following the king's orders.

Sir Tristan then approached the unconscious Merlin carefully and after checking that he was really out cold grabbed him harshly and dragged him of his horse.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Arthur finally exclaimed after regaining his composure "I'm the crowned prince of Camelot, you have no right to..."

"I'm sorry, Sire, but the king ordered us to restrain you the moment you entered the city." Sir Tristan said smugly "We cannot afford to let you roam the city whilst enchanted..."

"Enchanted?" repeated Arthur bemused, while he was being dragged to his feet. "I'm not enchanted... I demand to speak to my father! NOW!"

"My deepest apologies, my lord..." turning to the men holding the prince he continued "Bring him to his chambers, lock him in and guard the door, he is not to be led out until the sorcerer is dead."

While Arthur was dragged away by five men Sir Leon unconsciously started to back away slowly as he knew he could be accused of being enchanted next. Out of immediate sight he then watched as a guard picked up Merlin and carried him away, most likely to the dungeons. Not wanting to push his luck Leon left the courtyard silently and rushed to the physician's quarters...if someone knew what to do it would be Gaius...

* * *

In the throne room Uther was pacing and waiting to be informed about the happenings in the courtyard. When he had seen Arthur and his party return, he'd been so relieved that Arthur was still alive, but his joy had been short-lived as he'd spotted the sorcerer a moment later. He had had no other choice than to confine his son to his chambers until the sorcerer's hold over him was broken.

However, what surprised him the most was when the guards searching the boy's chambers had returned and told him that there was nothing in there indicating that the boy was a sorcerer. No forbidden books or magical objects; nothing. He had even sent a second group to confirm that, but still nothing was found, which was rather odd. (Fortunately Sir Tristan, who had led the search, had proven to be rather unimaginative with hiding spots. It hadn't even occurred to him that there could be something under the floor boards...As for the second group, it would be pretty hard to find a loose board, when the cupboard was lying on top of it...)

When Sir Tristan finally arrived in the throne room Uther was already very impatient, but upon hearing the good news, namely that the sorcerer was in the dungeons and his son seemingly unharmed, he relaxed considerably.

And after arranging the sorcerer's execution for the next morning, he settled down to eat.

* * *

In the meantime Sir Leon contemplated what to do. After finding out that Gaius of all people had been arrested, he'd hurried to his own rooms to plan his next steps. The most important task now was to free Arthur and if possible Merlin, so they could defeat the sorcerer with the necklace...but how could he possibly change the king's mind? Sir Tristan had... pausing in his thoughts Leon began to smile wickedly, already forming a new plan...he'd never liked that slimy knight...

'_Oh, this is just brilliant.'_

.

.

.

Five minutes later Leon approached the king, who was still eating, bowed deeply and waited for the allowance to speak.

"Sir Leon, what is it?"

"My lord, I..." throwing a calculated slightly scared looking glance at Tristan after making sure Uther was watching him, he continued "I've come to you in Prince Arthur's stead, as you surely know I was there when we fought the sorcerers the first and the second time...and I can assure you, Sire, that Merlin isn't a sorcerer. I've seen nothing indicating the opposite..."

Tristan interrupted Leon promptly "He is lying! He must be enchanted as well."

"May I continue my reasoning, Sire?" after a nod from the king he continued "First of all let me remind you that the boy we're talking about may be the worst servant ever, but his faults are a mental affliction and no coordination whatsoever, not a devious mind and being a sorcerer. And secondly I can't help, but wonder why Sir Tristan accused the boy, even if there had been any magical action on Merlin's part he certainly wouldn't know about it."

Uther, who had to admit that Leon's description of the boy was quite accurate, frowned in confusion when he mentioned Sir Tristan's accusation and demanded to know what Leon meant.

"Well, Sire, as I recall it..and I'm sure the prince can confirm this...Sir Tristan was knocked out in the very first minute of the fight by an invisible force; he was hit in the chest and lost consciousness. But now he claims he saw Merlin cast some kind of spell; it just doesn't add up, unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Sire, your son has proven to be our greatest defence against magic, he always prevails in battle, and now he's locked away, unable to help. Isn't that exactly what the sorcerers would want?" trailing of Leon left the king to draw his own conclusion and was barely able to hide his triumphant smile as he saw the king paling.

Pushing away from the table Uther stood up and turned on Sir Tristan. "You, it was you all this time; you're working for the sorcerers!"

"No Sire, please I don't..." pleaded the accused knight.

"Silence! I won't listen to your lies any longer. Guards take him away and release my son from his chambers immediately. Also, let the boy and... Gaius go, tell him I... apologise for my distrust and will in future remember his devotion."

"Sir Leon, you have once again shown unwavering loyalty to Camelot. I am indebted to  
you, this will surely not be forgotten."

"I've only done my duty, Sire."

* * *

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	9. Chapter 9

**Okaay, so I'm late...again, really sorry about that, but the second round of exams is coming up =,( soo yeah...**

**Anyway, wow...wow _18 reviews_ for the last chapter :D :D that's my new record! Thank you so much, you're all amazing! and I do hope you'll like this one as much.**

**Just a little warning for this chapter, cause I think Gaius might be a little OOC, but it is necessary for the story so hope it's not too bad and you're going to forgive me xD also, as some of you have pointed out that they're a _little_ sorry for _Sir_ Tristan I just had to address his 'fate' and make it less deadly(?) ^^ **

**Disclaimer: Still don't...**

**_Enjoy_!**

**Chapter 9**

When Gaius returned to his chambers after his unpleasant stay in the dungeons he was quite shocked to find Merlin lying on his bed looking dead to the world. His face was even paler than usual and several tries to wake him up failed. But even after a thorough inspection of his ward he could not tell what was wrong with him. There were no external injuries and no visible reasons for his state.

Gaius was about to panic as Prince Arthur and Sir Leon entered the room, the former looking positively murderous, while Sir Leon exuded an aura of confidence like never before. Filing that for later inspection the physician asked Arthur what had happened, dropping all facades of him not knowing what Merlin was, as he assumed that he had already figured out his involvement and thanking the gods that Merlin had managed to tell him about the prince's and Leon's discovery before they left for the search. The prince immediately lost his furious expression in favour of a worried frown and recounted the incident with the sorcerers.

Throughout hearing the tale Gaius went through a wide range of emotions. From anxiety to gladness to horror, when he realized that while Merlin wasn't dead (yet) he had been completely drained of his magic. And while Merlin was strong, Gaius was afraid he wouldn't survive it.

The moment he had heard that the necklace was found, he had been afraid that using it against someone like Merlin would mean his death, as his very essence was magic. Now _thankfully_ his theory was proven wrong, but how that was possible he didn't know.

"…and then they tried to kill me, but something Merlin did saved me from the spell and the sorcerer died instead. Then the…"

"Wait…" interrupting Arthur, Gaius exclaimed "He protected you?"

"Yes, at least that's what the other one said; some kind of shield reflected the spell."

Continuing his line of thought Gaius suddenly realized something, what if he had been right and his own actions had kept Merlin from dying? Could it really be that his boy had unintentionally saved himself with his attempt to save his friend? But then…

"Uhm..Gaius?" reclaiming the physician's attention Arthur said "I'm sorry to disrupt you, but we have no time left, the sorcerer can be here every minute. We really need…help." At this he looked pointedly at his unconscious servant. "Do you have any idea how to wake him up?"

Deciding to rather test his new theory instead of thinking it over a hundred times, Gaius simply apologized to the prince, raised his arm and pointed at a now bemused looking Arthur and said **"Astrice!"**

Arthur and Leon were rather shocked and while Leon tried to get in front of his prince, Arthur was so surprised he even forgot to duck. However, before the spell even reached his target a shimmering ripple appeared in the air in front of Arthur and the attack was deflected, now heading for Gaius.

Having expected this to happen he hurriedly leapt to the side, successfully avoiding the retaliation, while the bookshelf behind him was struck full force and collapsed. After regaining his balance Gaius regarded his once well organized books, which were now strewn across the floor and only sighed in defeat, thinking that even unconscious his ward created a mess.

Sir Leon, who was now standing in front of Arthur protectively, and Arthur, who still seemed shell-shocked regarded Gaius rather dumbly, not really believing that the old man had just used magic. _Magic_ and _Gaius_…that were two words Arthur would never have thought could collocate.

The physician, who wasn't even worried about Leon's sword that was pointed at him, turned around nonchalantly and while bending down to pick up some relevant books he restarted the conversation.

"I apologize again, Sire. I just needed to confirm something. It seems that Merlin indeed managed to cast a protection spell on you before he passed out from the draining."

Still a little confused Arthur nodded and answered "Oh…okay, but was has that got to do with waking him up?"

"Actually that spell is the key to wake him up…and I believe also the reason why he survived the effects of the necklace in the first place…."

The now completely confused and clueless faces of the two knights then prompted Gaius to continue his explanation "I don't know what Merlin told you about his magic, but I can assure you that normally the separation of his magic would have meant his death. However, he appears to have transferred a small part of his magical essence into the shield with the purpose to keep the spell intact after he was passed out or drained and this saved his life."

Arthur, who still had a problem with believing the concept of his servant actually doing something right and additionally thinking in advance, looked rather skeptical after hearing Merlin's quite brilliant initiative and asked incredulously "You're seriously telling me that _Merlin_ was smart enough to think ahead and not only saved me, but himself as well?"

"No…I think that his magic reacted instinctively to protect him."

"Right, that's more like it…soo how do we get him back on his feet then?"

"Well, we just have to end the spell, whereupon his essence will return to his body."

"And how do we do that?"

"That I don't know… _yet."_ he replied holding up one of his books demonstratively.

.

.

.

About half an hour later a guard entered the physician's chambers and came upon a rather interesting sight…Prince Arthur, Sir Leon and Gaius were all sitting at the table with several books in front of them and apparently searching for something.

After another minute of staring at the prince, the guard finally addressed him "Sire, the king would like to see you." Arthur, who barely managed to contain his relieve and stop himself from leaping out of his chair, only nodded and left the room gracefully.

As soon as he was out of the door a confused Gaius turned to Sir Leon and asked "Since when does the king ask nicely?"

Leon suppressed a smug smile and informed the physician of what had occurred during his time in the dungeons. And Gaius too seemed to think it was quite ingenious to use Uther's paranoia against himself if his gleeful expression was anything to go by.

The only thing the physician was slightly worried about was Sir Tristan…yes he had betrayed Merlin, but still he was actually the one who had not broken the law and now he was punished for it? Sharing his concerns with Leon, the knight swiftly assured him that Sir Tristan would most likely only be locked up until the remaining sorcerer was dead and the "enchantment" broken. After that he would only have to apologize profusely for his "treachery" and return to his knightly duties, most likely with a watchdog for the first months.

Satisfied with the answer and the outcome of the events concerning Merlin's exposure in general Gaius once again concentrated on finding a way to reverse his ward's spell.

* * *

_Throne Room_

In the meantime Arthur had entered the throne room and had listened to his father apologize, in a roundabout way of course…the king could hardly admit that he was wrong. Now the Pendragon-men were silently staring at each other, Arthur still annoyed and therefore rather uncooperative and Uther stoically refusing to speak until his son had accepted the apology.

.

.

Several minutes later Uther grudgingly conceded this 'victory' to his son and gave into his urge to inquire if they had made any progress in finding the last sorcerer or finding a way to destroy the necklace.

"No, not yet…but Sir Leon, Gaius and I are working on it."

"Gaius?"

"Yes Sire, he is the only one who knows where to look and therefore volunteered to help…for Camelot. But we still need some time to look through all the books" Ignoring Arthur's quite obvious hint at Gaius loyalty Uther replied "Yes, yes, of course, I'll make sure no one disturbs your…research."

"Thank you, father." Answered the blonde, only just stopping himself from rolling his eyes as the only one who had disturbed them until now was Uther himself.

And so Arthur reluctantly returned to the research feast in the physician's quarters, all the while praying that they would find the answer soon, because every moment now an evil sorcerer could arrive in Camelot…

* * *

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	10. Chapter 10

**Here's chapter 10 little late _again_, but I nearly finished in time...sadly I'm not sure if docx is working or not so after waiting for a few days I decided to post this unbeta'd...again..(so Dawn that Shines if you see this pleeasse let me know if you got anything or not...)**

**Anyway sorry for any mistakes and hope you enjoy the chapter + thank you for all the lovely reviews! =) **

**Disclaimer: Still don't...**

**Chapter 10**

"Here, I found it!" exclaimed an excited Prince Arthur.

His two fellow researchers, Gaius and Sir Leon, only looked up warily and a slightly annoyed physician asked "Are you sure, Sire?"

Nodding enthusiastically Arthur replied "Yes, yes this is it!"

Not quite able to hide his annoyance like the physician Sir Leon said exasperatedly "_Sure_ like the last _**three times**_ or really _really_ sure?"

Only glaring in response the prince once again proclaimed his success in finding the solution for their or rather Merlin's little problem. Interrupting the staring match and preventing the impending argument between the two knights Gaius interjected with asking "So what does it say, Sire?"

"Uhm…no idea…" which led to a complete silence and some frustrated looks "...but there's a picture of a guy, where this shiny aura is leaving his body and going into a jar or something."

That indeed got the physician's attention, who immediately grabbed the book and started to translate the old tongue, in which this entry was written. The prince only smiled smugly and leaned back in his chair looking very pleased with himself. Sir Leon also promptly dropped the book he had been studying and closed his eyes to relax; honestly he had no idea how Gaius was able to do this constant researching without going blind.

.

.

_Several minutes later_

Finally finished with reading the whole passage Gaius announced "Well, it seems as if we have indeed found a way to return the essence to Merlin's body." Seeing the delighted expression on the others faces Gaius hurriedly continued "However, it is not be an easy task and also require magic."

"Yeah, figures, that's alright…I guess, but you can do it, can't you?" spotting the physician's growing frown Arthur hastily carried on "Gaius, please tell me I didn't just spend _endless_ hours researching for nothing!"

Signature eyebrow rising Gaius was tempted to point out that seemingly endless hours meant one and a half hour for the prince before answering the question. "According to the text we need a sidhe to perform this old spell, which you can see here in the picture with the tiny blue roughly human-shaped creature flying close to the man. Also, the vessel of the essence needs to be shattered, which in this case would apparently be you, Sire…" a considerable paler Arthur interjected here with a 'I'm going to kill him, that… that idiot, forget it, no one's going to **shatter** **me'** "…but I am sure with a human vessel this probably only means a minor cut in the skin."

"Oh…good."

Sir Leon, who had also been listening intently, returned the conversation to the more important part, namely this sidhe persona who would have to help. "What exactly is a sidhe?"

"The sidhe are an old race of magical creatures, fairies, who live in Avalon, a vicious people."

"They're not going to help us, are they?"

"No."

Arthur, who had long ago lost his patience threw his hands up in defeat and said "Great, just great. What are we doing now?"

"…"

* * *

At the same time outside Camelot a hooded figure approached a hill overlooking the castle. For a moment the man just stood there and enjoyed the view, picturing how this vile place would look like after he was done with it. Finally the time had come to revenge his brethren, who had been slaughtered in this very castle. Smirking in triumph the sorcerer revealed the necklace, which had been hidden under his cloak and held it into the blinding sunlight, reveling in the way the ruby glowed blood-red.

With one last glance at the citadel the sorcerer started to prepare the ritual for releasing the power within the ruby. By sunset Camelot would be no more.

* * *

Oblivious to the happenings outside the physician's chambers, but still somewhat impatient and nervous Arthur Pendragon was pacing, back and forth and back and forth…only momentarily stopping to regard the court physician expectantly and resuming again when silence was all that answered him. Sir Leon, who couldn't bear watching the pacing any longer, decided to at least make himself useful by disappearing into Merlin's room to remove the traces of the search.

Shaking his head in disbelief as he saw the chaos Leon only sighed and started by returning the fallen cupboard to its former place. After that he went to pick up the clothing that had fallen out and was strewn across the floor, when suddenly the floor gave way and he landed on his back with a loud thud. Praying that the other hadn't heard anything Leon stood up hastily and scowled at the floor or more accurately at a hidden compartment under the floorboard he had just stepped on and lifted with his weight on only one end.

Looking at it more closely Leon noticed two things in there, a book and a walking stick, which really confused him, why would Merlin hide a cane? The book was easily explainable as it was most likely about magic, but still…a _walking_ _stick_?

While he knew that Gaius had other things to think about right now Leon decided to ask the physician about it. Therefore he picked it up and went back into the main chambers.

"Gaius? I just have a question, why does Merlin hide a walking stick?"

The head knight, who had expected an irritated answer and a dismissive glance, was quite surprised when the physician whirled around and stared at the thing like it was made of gold.

"Sir Leon, you just solved our problem. Oh and it's the staff of a sidhe, which is able channel a lot of power, enough to perform the spell, hopefully." Gaius stated, before rushing back to the book to memorize the spell. Arthur, who had stopped his frantic behavior the moment he had heard the physician's words, rushed over to Leon and examined the staff closely.

"How come Merlin has one of those?" the blonde asked and silently added _'and why didn't you think of that right away..?'_

Gaius, who by now knew the spell by heart, stepped away from the table to get a knife before he walked over to where Merlin was sleeping and simultaneously answered the question by telling the prince about what had really happened with Sophia and her father.

"Ohh..." storing that information for later, Arthur again promised himself to make Merlin tell him everything that had happened. A little distracted by his thoughts Arthur took the staff from Leon and walked to Merlin's side. And after handing the cane to Gaius he held up his left arm without hesitation, watching as the physician proceeded to make a small cut with his knife and started to chant with the staff firmly in his hand.

"**ágief hwa sgifon ****þæt géowine eorðfæt." **

At first nothing happened and Arthur was about to complain, when the crystal at the top of the staff suddenly started to glow. Then Gaius repeated the spell and the shield, which was protecting Arthur, shimmered into life and was dragged away from him slowly.

And after another citing of the spell, small silver threads started to appear, which connected the essence to Arthur, and one by one they released their hold on the prince and attached themselves on the unconscious Merlin before disappearing inside his body. Whereupon the glowing stopped all together and all signs of the shield were gone.

Unable to stand a long silence again, Arthur said "It worked, right?" Gaius was about to answer as Merlin's eyelids fluttered open slowly, revealing a pair of golden eyes.

* * *

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	11. Chapter 11

**hehe finished in time... I think and it's even beta'd (Thx to Dawn that shines for her always excellent work) =) **

**99 reviews ! one more? come on, pleeeease :D **

**And once again thank you for all reviews , alerts , favourites :D love you all **

**So, hope you'll again enjoy this chapter as much as the last ones, or more as Merlin is finally awake! **

**Disclaimer: NOOOO!**

**Chapter 11**

Merlin's POV

When Merlin had fallen unconscious all those hours ago he had thought that, like always, this state would bring him peace and would let him escape the pain. However, this time it seemed that the pain followed him into the very recesses of his mind.

And it hurt, really bad. Before now Merlin had believed that the 'training' Arthur had him join regularly, which more or less consisted of Arthur pounding him into the ground with various weapons, was painful, but now he knew that it was nothing against real agony.

The longer the draining went the more painful it became, up until the very end when he felt as if his very life was taken away from him and his very being torn apart and then completely missing. Only the soothing presence of something nearby helped him to remain in this world and not fade away.

After what felt like minutes or hours, all the same, his reality shifted again, Merlin suddenly felt as if he was given back part of what was missing, nonetheless, it was not yet enough. While it enabled him to leave this state of half-existing, he still felt incomplete.

When Merlin opened his eyes, for what seemed to be the first time in an eternity, his vision was tinted gold and slightly blurred. For several minutes he remained perfectly still to accommodate his eyesight to the world around him, just then he saw the three people around him, looking at him with concern. And while he knew that they were his friends or allies he had forgotten their names. But for now, this was of no importance for him, as another part of his mind already shifted its attention to something else entirely.

There was something just out of his reach, but close enough for him to feel, something he needed to get to right away. Trying to get up from the foreign bed, however, proved more difficult than he would have thought, as his body seemed to be too heavy and unresponsive to his commands. Remembering the three people, who still stared at him strangely, Merlin politely asked them to help him up. Unfortunately his request was only met with confused looks and an outburst of the blonde man, in a language he did not know.

End MPOV

* * *

From the moment Merlin's eyes opened Arthur had expected his servant to be his usual babbling self and jump up to save the day, as he had gotten the impression that that was exactly what the idiot normally did. So he was quite surprised when Merlin did nothing. He just lay there and stared up at the ceiling for several minutes. Hell, if his eyes weren't open he'd say he was still unconscious.

When Merlin then finally moved, it became clear that he was too weak to even sit up, but before Arthur could offer his assistance Merlin turned to look at them and said…well something. And would this have happened in any other time than right now, Arthur would have started laughing immediately after hearing this. In this situation though the prince felt like screaming and crying at the same time. Merlin the one who was supposed to save them had lost it completely.

No knowing what else to do, Arthur did the only thing he could think of, he asked Gaius.

"He's talking gibberish! Why is he talking gibberish?"

Gaius, who had had quite enough of the prince's presence for one day, silently counted to ten before answering, "He isn't talking nonsense, he is speaking the old tongue, an old variety of it in fact. It appears that the part of his essence we just returned holds his knowledge of the language of the old religion, therefore for him it is the only language he knows…at least at the moment. When the rest of him is returned he should regain his other knowledge and abilities."

"Aha… great, please tell me you can actually understand him."

"Yes… that is parts of it. I have forgotten many words I once knew, but I will do my best to translate, Sire." After that Gaius turned to the silently watching Merlin and told him in the old language to repeat what he had said before. Merlin's face lit up in joy as he realized that someone understood him and hastily repeated his request.

The elderly physician listened carefully and then turned to Arthur and relayed the request. Arthur, who had expected something more…useful… only rolled his eyes and returned to the Merlin's side to help him up, whereupon he received a grateful look from his weak servant.

The warlock had in the meantime also realized that if he wanted help, he would need to ask the white-haired man, as the two armed men, most likely warriors of some kind, were seemingly illiterate. So, very carefully and using easy words Merlin began to explain that he needed to go.

Gaius did his best to understand everything and again translated his wards words to the two knights. "I believe, he wants to go somewhere, but in his state he needs help. And if I'm not completely mistaken he also said that whatever he wants to get from this place… already belongs to him."

After hearing those words Arthur nearly dragged Merlin out of the bed and toward the exit of the chambers, while calling back, "I bet this something is the rest of his soul or essence or whatever. Sir Leon, let's go and tell the stable hands to saddle our horses, we're leaving immediately. Gaius, I'll bring Merlin back as soon as we have defeated the sorcerer."

Sir Leon, knight extraordinaire, promptly ran out of the room after his prince, to carry out his orders.

And so Arthur, Merlin and Sir Leon once again left the castle to hunt the sorcerer and destroy the necklace, while Gaius remained in his chambers and prayed that this time they would return successful.

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**Review? =) =)**

**btw next chapter will most likely be late as I have 3 exams next week...wish me luck xD**


	12. Chapter 12

**Okay soo sorry for the delay and am afraid this chapter is more a filler than anything, but necessary and I didn't have time for more...**

**Also I don't know when I'm going to be able to update again cause I'm on a two months 'vacation' in London :D , where I'll be going to have some courses soo yeah... I'll try my best to update soon...**

**And thanks for all the reviews and favourites as well as alerts, sorry for not replying to the reviews, will do that at a later point as the internet here is a _little_ slow...**

**Disclaimer: Still noo...=(**

**Chapter 12**

For the people of Camelot it was a quite normal sight to see their prince and one of his knights riding out of the citadel in a hurry. So no one really paid attention to it anymore, however, had they looked closer this time, they would have realized that not two, but three people were sitting on the two horses. As it was, the prince's mare was carrying not only its master, but also his master's ever present manservant. And if that wasn't strange enough yet, there was also the fact that Prince Arthur was basically hugging said servant.

But as it was the people of Camelot remained oblivious to the happenings and missed out on a whole new level of gossip. And Arthur was rather grateful that he was spared the humiliation of people knowing that he had hugged Merlin. Well, not that he had done that at any point of time, god forbid, no, he was simply helping Merlin to stay upright on the horse. Also, he had to hold the reins, because who knows where the idiot would lead his mare to.

So, now outside of the castle he and Sir Leon were following Merlin's pointing, as he had long ago abandoned trying to explain to them where to go. At the moment the three of them were heading to the east of the castle, slowly closing in on a hill overlooking the citadel.

Arthur only hoped that they would reach their destination soon as the sun had already started to set and it would be more difficult to find anything without sunlight. Also, it seemed as if Merlin was getting weaker by the minute. When they had left Camelot he was still sitting upright, more or less on his own. The more time passed he had started to slump against Arthur more and more, and finally leaned on him completely. Now, instead of simply supporting Merlin's weight a little he had to hold him tightly to make sure he wouldn't fall off the horse.

So time was their enemy now, racing not only against sunset, but also against Merlin's growing weakness, as they couldn't afford to lose their guide.

Several minutes later Merlin suddenly tensed and started to gesture tiredly, while mumbling in his strange language. Arthur, who tried his best to understand his servant, instantly came to the brilliant conclusion that something was up; the only question was what. Sir Leon looked about as confused as Arthur felt and was most likely waiting for his prince to figure out what he wanted.

Merlin, on the other hand, was as frustrated as the two clueless knights were, he was tired and slowly but surely losing the battle against unconsciousness once again. While he knew that this time he would wake up again after some rest, he knew that he simply couldn't afford to fall asleep. Not only did the warriors need him to guide the way, he himself needed to find whatever was calling out to him, to become whole again.

Fighting of his weariness and concentrating on the heartbeat of the man behind him, Merlin summoned his remaining strength and abruptly freed himself from the other man'sembrace;whereupon he promptly lost his balance and fell of the horse. Completely surprised by Merlin's actions Arthur failed to catch him in time and could do nothing more than wince in sympathy when the other hit the ground hard.

Arthur first thought was that Merlin had simply panicked for whatever reason and unintentionally fallen of, but now it was quite obvious to him that Merlin was actually trying to convey his message this way. Cause right after he had recovered from the fall he started to gesture again. He first pointed to Arthur and Leon, and then to the ground, followed by him crawling forward a little. He then stopped and hastily dropped to the ground again, while pretending he was looking over some obstacle and watching something.

Apparently finished with his explanation Merlin turned back to the knights and watched them expectantly. All the while Merlin really hoped that next time he woke up in a state like this he would be in the company of more intelligent people. The blonde man, especially, seemed to be quite slow as he was simply staring at him with a dumbfounded look on his face.

At the same time Arthur managed to shake of his initial reaction of 'Now he's lost it completely...' and instead interpreted the actions. He then motioned to Sir Leon to get off the horse, while he did the same and after an approving nod from Merlin, he proceeded to walk forward stealthily, earning himself another nod from the on the ground laying man.

Arthur and Leon bound their horses to a nearby tree and together helped Merlin to his feet. Again following the direction Merlin had given them, they walked in complete silence. Moving up the hill they crouched down shortly before they reached the peak, and crawled the rest of the way.

Arthur was only mildly surprised when he saw the last sorcerer, who was bent over the necklace murmuring something. Readying himself for a surprise attack he knew he would have to be fast and that he only had one chance to end this quickly. After exchanging one last look with his two companions Arthur soundlessly readied his sword and lunged forward to kill the sorcerer with one strike…

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	13. Chapter 13

**Okay, here comes the next chapter (unbeta'd, sorry for any mistakes) **

**Little warning here there is going to be slight Merlin bashing? but only a tiny bit...plus it doesn't really hurt him...**

**Again thanks for all the reviews and alerts and favourites! Love them..and you of course :D And if I forgot to reply to someone, sorry and Thank you! =) **

**Disclaimer: Nooo...**

**Chapter 13**

…and missed spectacularly as the sorcerer dissolved into smoke and reappeared several meters to the right, making Arthur lose his balance due to the momentum of the strike.

"I wonder why is it that you fall into our traps every time? Are the knights of Camelot generally dumb or is it just you?" taunted the sorcerer mockingly. Like always Arthur didn't take the insult very well and immediately charged forward again. But to no avail, his opponent simply shouted something and Arthur was thrown back and into a tree, where he was then held with magic. So for the second time he couldn't move and he didn't like it one bit. Even more so, as the protective spell was no longer in place, practically leaving him helpless…and Arthur hated to be unable to defend himself.

Thankfully the sorcerer was too preoccupied with his gloating to continue his assault right away for that he seemed to enjoy talking way too much.

"How interesting…so Emrys' spell broke already? I must say, I expected more from the 'most powerful sorcerer to ever walk the earth'…quite disappointing, don't you think?. But well, the dead are rarely able to keep spells going…" and so on and so forth…it was rather annoying, but as it was Sir Leon was using the sorcerers distracted state to sneak up on him from behind, to hopefully deliver a fatal blow.

However, before he was even close, the sorcerer, still standing with his back to Sir Leon, exclaimed "Really?" turning to face Leon shortly before returning his gaze to Arthur he added "So, it's not just you, huh…you should call yourself the Knights of Density that would fit you all much better. Now, go over to your precious little prince."

Joining Arthur by the tree the two knights shared a defeated look and both thought that now it was up to Merlin…if he was still conscious of course…

* * *

Merlin, who was still hidden behind the boulder of the hill, was indeed awake and while watching the scene before him, getting quite frustrated. Seriously, the warriors were already illiterate, so he had at least expected them to be adequate or exceptional warriors, because kings normally had skilled fighters. But as it turned out, both of them had been incapacitated in minutes…make that seconds. It was rather embarrassing…

Anyway, now the success of this 'mission' was riding on his shoulders…Just great, especially since he could barely move. Thinking quickly Merlin focused on the necklace lying on the floor next to the sorcerer, because apparently this was what he was looking for. Even from this distance he could feel the power radiating from it, as if it was in his own hand and he just knew that it belonged to him.

A quick glance back to the others revealed that his opponent was still bragging, perfect for him to get the necklace right under his nose. Knowing that his reserves were already close to their limit and would be barely enough to move the item that far Merlin channelled everything he had into one strong pull. Unfortunately the sudden movement of the jewellery caught the attention of the sorcerer, who immediately gave chase.

Catching the necklace out of the air Merlin thought dejectedly that now the only problem left was to get the power out of the thing, and simultaneously defeating an angry sorcerer, while his own reserves where all but depleted. What made the situation even worse was that in his condition running wasn't an option. And of course there was the fact that there was no one to save him still 'tied up' as they were. This was just getting better and better.

When his furious enemy was nearly upon him Merlin, necklace in hand, decided on the most reasonable action for now…and promptly rolled down the hill. Reckoning that maybe if his pursuer got far enough away from his companions and distract him enough then maybe the spell would break…hopefully cause otherwise Merlin was fresh out of ideas.

As he was tumbling down the hill at a rather impressive speed he effectively managed to evade the sorcerer's grasping hands several times, infuriating him even more. More than halfway down the hill Merlin began praying that the spell had already broken, because he didn't really fancy dying…

* * *

_With Arthur and Leon _

The moment the other two were out of sight Sir Leon tried to free Arthur, but to no avail. Whatever he did, there was no response, the spell wasn't affected in the least. Finally Leon was thinking about felling the tree, but Arthur stopped him before he could do more than scratch the bark a little. The blonde ordered the knight to go help Merlin instead of continuing these useless attempts to free him.

So after giving his prince an apologetic look Leon took off to pursue Merlin and the sorcerer, leaving behind an extremely annoyed and soon bored Arthur.

* * *

_Merlin _

Merlin had by now reached the end of the hill, but kept rolling forward a bit due to his speed. Unfortunately even that stopped after a few meters and he was now a sitting duck.

At last the sorcerer reached him and promptly let his frustration out on Merlin, by kicking him.

The young warlock then barely refrained from telling him that he kicked like a girl, because he was quite sure the other wouldn't take that too well.

"The necklace, give it to me! NOW!" bellowed the infuriated sorcerer, while continuing his (soft-) kicking. And apart from the fact that Merlin couldn't understand the language, he was pretty sure he knew what the man wanted. In answer to the question Merlin only smiled victoriously and showed the sorcerer his empty hands, which resulted in a scream and an attempted attack. Cause suddenly someone slammed into him and knocked him to the ground.

Sir Leon had as always arrived just in time.

* * *

And unbeknownst to them Arthur, still more or less pinned to the tree, fell over the moment the scream sounded, depraved of the magic, which had been supporting his weight. (And NO, that never happened, princes did not just fall over…well according to Arthur at least.) Huffing in annoyance he got up and after brushing himself off he followed the others.

Now, as Arthur ran down the hill he soon slowed down, when he saw that Sir Leon was already restraining the sorcerer somewhat by holding his mouth shut. So , instead of running he walked past a red-glinting object in the grass. It was several steps later that Arthur did a double take and rushed back up the hill, finally seeing the necklace lying innocently in the grass.

Arthur smirked triumphantly, while picking it up and thought 'Whatever one might say about Merlin, he sure is sneaky. The sorcerer most likely ran right past what he was searching for. That ingenius idiot!'

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**..and sorry if you feel the ending is a little rushed, not so sure about that myself, but it seemed like the perfect place to stop.. **


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey =) terribly sorry about the long wait and the rather short chapter, but I warned you...also unbeta'd so sorry for any mistakes I made! **

**Thank you again for all the reviews, I'll try to answer them today but I don't know if I'll have the time, anyway, enjoy and pls bear with me, as the next ch could be quite late as well...**

**Disclaimer: Noo...! **

**Chapter 14**

Merlin, who had the feeling that he had just missed something monumental, looked up the slope and was a little surprised to see that the blonde warrior had actually been attentive enough to see the necklace lying in the grass. Maybe he wasn't completely hopeless…

Then seeing him looking down Merlin again used gestures to signify him to destroy the necklace, while he prepared to say the incantation needed. Well… or he could say it if the warrior had understood him for once. Hopeless indeed, he really should talk with the man's superior; maybe an easier job would be better suited for someone like him. He really wasn't the brightest candle in the chandelier.

Merlin then slowly repeated his request with gestures every brute could understand. So using his acting skills he pretended he was holding something in his hand and then repeatedly smashed 'the object' against the ground until he made a crushing sound and looked up with a goofy smile indicating his success.

And _YES!_ the blonde finally caught up and raised the necklace over his head, before smashing it against the ground.

* * *

_A few minutes earlier_

Arthur, who was by now really appalled at Merlin's acting skills, mentally corrected his earlier exclamation to just 'Idiot.' He really couldn't wait until Merlin spoke the same language again…

and after shaking his head to get rid of the image of his strange behaviour he followed his servant's instruction to destroy the necklace. He slammed it against a conveniently close lying stone, breaking it on contact.

Promptly a bright red light shot out of the device and expanded rapidly, followed by a shock wave, which caught Arthur unawares and threw him back a few meters, where he landed with a loud thud. Grunting in pain Arthur only thought _'I really really hate this day!'_

The sorcerer and Sir Leon were also hit by the wave and sent flying, whereupon Sir Leon lost his hold on the sorcerer.

The only one not affected by it was Merlin, who on one hand was already on the ground and on the other hand chanting the spell, which was apparently ingrained in his mind, to get what belonged to him. In seconds he was surrounded by the red light and raised off the ground. Suspended in mid-air he watched as a golden light separated itself from the red one and disappeared inside his body, while the red light simply dissolved.

And just like the first time it hurt like hell, the only difference now was that his essence was given back and not taken. So instead of losing himself he was bombarded with hundreds and thousands of memories and feelings, as well as his knowledge. Having all of that stuffed into his brain in mere seconds was just too much, for a moment he even forgot how to breathe. But slowly the pain faded and Merlin was finally able to readjust to his new/old self.

As he then opened his eyes, the first thing he spotted was Prince Arthur, prat, friend and master, hovering over him with a worried frown. However, upon seeing him Merlin remembered all his impressions of the blonde during his 'black-out' and unceremoniously burst into laughter.

.

.

.

_Several minutes later_

Unable to stop himself Merlin was still rolling on the floor laughing with a very irritated prince glaring at him from the side. Even though Arthur had no idea what was so funny he still guessed it was at his expense and he didn't like it one bit.

But then the raven-haired man remembered that he still needed to fully explain everything to Arthur and hopefully not get executed, so with a lot of effort Merlin managed to pull himself together and let Arthur know he was back to normal.

"Hey, prat, missed me?"

Rewarded with the usual scowl and "Idiot." Merlin was pretty sure everything was alright again. Unfortunately, the happy reunion was quite rudely interrupted when Sir Leon came flying; successfully reminding them that they still had a sorcerer to defeat.

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	15. Chapter 15

**Okay, heres the full chapter, hope you'll like the way it turned out, didn't exactly go the way I planned, but I think it's still okay =) **

**And thank you to everyone who reviewed the half chapter and supplied me with suggestions. also to those where pm's are impossible =D **

**And while I was really tempted to use the one saying 'pretty please with Percival on top' I just couldn't as Percival isn't even in Camelot yet +Arthur would have never let me survive that...^^**

**Also, I guess I need to warn you, slightly late, that Arthur's going OCC in this chapter, but I think even a prince can do that for once... :D **

**(sorry for any mistakes =) )**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 15**

Arthur quickly checked if Sir Leon, who had lost consciousness, was injured, which he wasn't, before he focused on the annoyingly persistent sorcerer. Then deciding that he had had enough of the frustrating, unfair battles with the sorcerer, which always ended up with him being unable to move, he swiftly took a step back, behind Merlin and promptly pushed him forward.

"Hey!" exclaimed Merlin, while stumbling forward "What was that for?"

"Take care of that!" Arthur replied, waving his hand into the general direction of the other man "I need a break."

And Merlin, being Merlin, of course agreed that he had the best chances of winning this battle, but that didn't mean that he liked the way Arthur bossed him around. He wanted something…he could damn well ask nicely!

So walking back he went behind the prince and shoved him in return, while saying "Forget it, do it yourself!" A not very impressed Arthur immediately chose the mature way to handle this and pushed back exclaiming "I'm the Prince, you have to do what I say!" which only prompted Merlin to snort in response and again shove him back.

Basically for the next ten minutes the sorcerer watched incredulously as prince and manservant pushed each other around while shouting at each other like five-year olds.

"You'll do as I say!"

"Yeah, right and what do you dream about in the night?"

"_**MER**_lin I'll throw you in the stocks…"

"What else is new, _**Ar**_thur?" Merlin mocked imitating the prince's intonation. "Kill your own evil sorcerers, prat, why do I always have to do it?"

Finally fed up with the display the staring sorcerer collected his wits about him and decided to take action by firing a lightning bolt at the quarrelling couple.

Merlin, who fortunately felt the use of magic immediately abandoned the shouting match in favour of raising a magical shield to protect them from the attack.

A by now seriously pissed of Arthur then turned on the sorcerer and bellowed "Hey, can't you see we're in the middle of something here, wait for your turn…you'll die soon enough." And yeah that didn't really sit well with the guy, if the five new bolts were any indication.

Saved again by Merlin's shield Arthur finally realized that Merlin was actually their only way of successfully fighting the sorcerer. Upon this realisation he pulled himself together and for once decided to show a little appreciation and recognition of his skills. himself together and for once decided to show a little appreciation, so he faced his servant and reluctantly said "Merlin, could you... _please_ take care of him as we both know that right now you're the only one capable of killing him."

Afterwards Arthur looked as if he'd just bitten into something incredibly sour, but Merlin's expressions were even funnier. At first he appeared to be completely shocked, then slowly, realising what Arthur had just said the shock was replaced by gratitude, only to be promptly exchanged with concern, followed by a "You sure you're feeling ok? How many fingers do you see?" Merlin even tried to check Arthur's temperature, but the other would have none of it as he slapped his hand away.

"Oh forget it, you imbecile, just take care of him already. "And yep that was the prat he knew…

Rolling his eyes Merlin at last took a few steps forward, away from Arthur to make sure that no stray attack would hit him or the still unconscious Sir Leon, so he finally faced the sorcerer and readied himself for the magical duel. And as always Merlin thought about giving the other a chance to back out and simply tell him to leave Camelot alone, now that his plan had been stopped, however, after all the trouble Arthur, Sir Leon and he had had with the sorcerer he didn't think the prince would appreciate it if he let the man go…

Sighing heavily Merlin closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep, calming breath, he knew the other magic user wouldn't stop, he was hell-bent on destroying Camelot. Now even more so since the rest of his group was gone, killed by the knights of Camelot and Prince Arthur's protector. No, he simply had no other choice than to kill him…but that didn't mean he liked it. Merlin didn't think he ever would, no matter how often he was forced to do it.

But still he would continue to protect Camelot and especially Arthur like he always had…well for the last few years at least.

Opening his eyes again he then regarded his opponent warily and waited for his first move… Only to be a little disappointed when it was a lightning bolt _again_, had he no imagination at all? Or was it the only spell he knew? No wonder he had always run away up till now, if that was all he could manage…

Watching impassively as some more attacks collided with his shield Merlin, who had secretly hoped to impress Arthur a little with his magic, decided to end the 'battle', if you could call it that, quickly as it became rather obvious that no fancy magic would be necessary.

So also using one of his favourite spells Merlin created a ball of fire and threw it at the sorcerer. While he could just make out Arthur's muttered "_Finally_." in the background, his attack reached the sorcerer, who hastily raised a shield, but unfortunately for him he underestimated Merlin's strength quite a bit….which basically meant he was now a pile of ash. And naturally Merlin was glad that it was over so soon, but come on one _strike_?

.

.

.

"Seriously…that's what I had to beg for? One lousy fire… bolt?" Arthur exclaimed in exasperation.

Merlin only shrugged and went to check on Sir Leon, who was just waking up and after noticing the knights questioning glance to where the sorcerer had stood he just said "I won." which brought him a slightly scared, but mostly respectful look from Sir Leon.

Arthur, who was still muttering to himself about useless warlocks and that he could have finished that sorcerer off, no problem, picked up the broken necklace and put it into his bag for later, to show his father that it was truly destroyed. Having done that he immediately started to walk back to where they had left the horses, and shouted over his shoulder "Move it, Merlin. Leon just wait here, Merlin's going to bring you your horse."

Merlin only watched his master leaving and thought 'Prat.' and following Arthur he had to admit that he was glad everything was back to normal, well except for the part where the prince knew about his secret...

...he just hoped Arthur had forgotten all about the long talk he'd promised him…

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	16. Chapter 16

**I know, I know I'm late..as usual, but after realising that it's been already more than two weeks I immediately sat down to write the next chapter, a few hours ago. =) and I am not completely happy with it but arghh I don't know, just read it and tell me what you think.. xD**

**Anyways, the story is coming to an end now, I think there will be just one more chapter after this one..most likely.. tell me if you want one more... **

**Also, thanks for all your reviews, alerts and favourites I really appreciate it! =D **

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 16**

When the two knights and the warlock finally returned to Camelot, they were immediately ushered into the throne room, where King Uther anxiously awaited their or more likely his son's safe arrival. As Arthur and Sir Leon, who stayed slightly behind his prince, approached the king to give their report, Merlin quietly walked over to his place next to Gaius.

From the very moment Merlin had entered the room the elderly physician hadn't stopped watching his ward closely, probably looking for signs that he was himself again, and only after receiving a tiny nod, accompanied by a satisfied grin, did he allow himself to relax and shift his attention to the happenings before him.

"Father..." Arthur started, bowing marginally and taking the broken necklace out of his pocket "I..." interrupting himself yet again the blonde quickly glanced at Merlin and Sir Leon and started anew "We have successfully neutralised the sorcerer, as well as destroyed the necklace of Er... hem," having already forgotten the name he carefully and promptly covered his lack of knowledge with a harrumph.

...and he was only mildly surprised and annoyed to hear stifled laughter from Merlin's direction. However, unfortunately for his servant the king was also very much aware of the boy's indiscretion and moved to glare at him, but before he could throw him into the stocks..._again_ Arthur decided that he didn't want to wait for his explanation even longer and swiftly changed the subject.

"My lord, shouldn't Sir Tristan be released from the dungeons now? The sorcerer's hold over him must have been broken the moment he died..."

"Yes, yes indeed. Guards, bring Tristan here." Agreed Uther distractedly... very much to the disappointment of Sir Leon...couldn't the other knight be left down there a little longer? Just a day or two, maybe then he would at least lose some of his arrogance...

.

.

A few minutes later Sir Tristan was brought into the room and in front of his king. The knight looked only a little worse for wear; his clothes were dirty and ripped in a few places, but otherwise he was completely fine, especially as the knight already seemed to be regaining his arrogant demeanour. Even as the king demanded an apology and basically had him crawl on his knees in front of the entire court his overbearing attitude remained.

Uther seemed rather oblivious to that, but Arthur, Sir Leon, Gaius and Merlin saw it easily and knew that that guy would be causing them some trouble in the future. It was especially obvious when Tristan scowled at Merlin before he left the hall.

Apparently life would never get any easier for Merlin, and why the hell was he always the one who ended up in trouble?

'_Two sides of the same coin...just great, I must be the side who gets all the crappy stuff'_ thinking about that Merlin actually discovered some truth behind that; Arthur had the comfy bed, the delicious food, the money, the good looks... no he hadn't just thought that, god no. He was... and Arthur was and ...he'd better stop thinking now...

* * *

_About half an hour later…_

"Well, what are you waiting for? You're supposed to be telling me everything about your magic!" prompted Arthur, as Merlin, currently nervously playing with his fingers still refused to start talking.

Both were sitting at the table in the prince's chambers as they had been since leaving the throne room more than half an hour ago, and Merlin still remained quiet, except for the occasional 'uhm' and Arthur, who wasn't exactly known for his patience was slowly, but surely getting irritated.

Merlin, who was still unsure about what he was supposed to tell his master now and what to save for later, could not believe how difficult this actually was. The entire last two years he had thought about this conversation and every single time it had worked out perfectly... well except for the times he had imagined Arthur throwing him into the dungeons and subsequently burning him on the pyre, but hey at least he had said something in all those imaginary conversations.

Seeing Arthur's growing frustration Merlin then simply decided to ask him where he wanted him to start.

"At the beginning, of course," was the very helpful answer.

"Uhm, okay, I was born in Eald..."

"Not that far back, start with when you began practicing magic." Interrupted Arthur rudely, whereupon Merlin looked at him rebelliously and started again, more confidently this time.

"I was born in Ealdor..."

"_Mer_lin didn't I just tell you to start with the magic part?"

"I'm trying, but you won't let me, _prat_. Did you already forget what I told you in that clearing a few days ago? I was _**BORN**_ with magic! So, the very first day of my life I started 'practicing' magic." The prince thought about that for a second before shrugging and beckoning Merlin to continue.

And so the young warlock recounted his story, leaving out the uninteresting bits and the parts he wasn't yet ready to share, like Freya's and his father's fate, the lie about the great dragon, as well as Uther's involvement in his mother's death and he really wasn't sure how or if he was going to explain that last one to Arthur. The truth about the late queen's demise was something the prince had a right to know, but at the same time Merlin knew that Arthur was not yet ready for that news.

Hours later in the middle of the night Merlin finally left the prince's chambers to let Arthur wrap his head around all the things he had learned tonight. And while he was walking through the silent corridors he couldn't help, but grin happily as he had a feeling that everything would be just fine...

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	17. Chapter 17

**Okay, so here is the promised last chapter, hope you like it..I'm not totally happy with it, but well. And I decided to write a sequel to this story, but it could take some time till I come around to that, cause I started a different story already and will probably finish that one first before I write the sequel...not sure yet. If university is nice I will try to start writing it sooner! **

**Anyway, thank you all for the support and your lovely reviews +alerts and favourites. I really enjoyed writing this story and am glad that so many of you said that you loved/liked it! Thank you! =) **

**Enjoy!**

**Epilogue **

Two days later Merlin got up late as usual, and went to retrieve the prince's breakfast from the kitchens. As he then slowly made his way to Arthur's chambers he was astonished that, even after all that's happened in the past week, Camelot was still the same. Servants were running around hastily, conducting duties for their masters and knights and noble men were either training or launching around and enjoying the day. Simply put everything was just the same.

And wasn't that just…disappointing? He was of course aware that it was best that way and possibly safest for him, but at the same time he wondered how it was possible that no matter what plagued Camelot was basically forgotten as soon as it was resolved. Only few seemed to be concerned with what happened a few days ago and even fewer were sceptical about the sorcerers' easy defeat. Even he had to admit that for all the trouble they had caused, they had lost and consequently been killed very fast.

Well, Sir Tristan, Merlin thought darkly, certainly had his doubts and would most likely be a problem in the future, but he would worry about that later…now on to ponder more important things…

How could the revelation of his gifts to Arthur have been so _uneventful_?

Whenever Merlin had thought about the time after his secret had been revealed, he had imagined fireworks, possibly even earthquakes or at least _something monumental _to happen. It had always seemed to be such a huge step and now? No change at all.

He was still the 'mentally retarded' manservant and clumsy as ever, which he promptly proved when walking into Arthur's room, as he tripped over nothing than his own feet and dropped the breakfast tray. Reacting on pure instinct and the wish not to have to go back to the kitchens Merlin slowed time and caught the tray and its content before it could hit the ground. Merlin then sighed in relief and righted himself, only to nearly drop it again as he was greeted with the sight of a very awake Prince Arthur, who was staring at him intently from his favourite armchair.

Standing stock still Merlin was contemplating if his master was now angry or just surprised or simply dumbstruck as usual. After the initial conversation they had not talked about the magic again and Merlin was unsure how to act around him. Maybe he should say something to break the tension? But then again he didn't know what Arthur had decided after thinking about his confessions ...oh dear what to do?

Fortunately Arthur apparently decided to save him the trouble and said "What are you dolt waiting for?" and upon receiving a confused look, he continued disdainfully, while gesturing to the table in front of him, "My breakfast."

"Oh, yes of course." Jolted into action he rushed forward and placed it in front of Arthur and then, like every good servant would, started to tidy the chambers. Occasionally his contemplating gaze was drawn back to the eating prince, but he was either to busy with the food to notice the looks or simply ignored them.

Pushing his luck a little Merlin though up a little experiment. He had spotted the dirty armour a while ago and decided to try something. So, after another glance to Arthur he muttered a quick cleansing spell and waited for the prince's reaction.

Several tense minutes later Merlin was still waiting..._Nothing,_ no reaction at all_. _

'_Interesting'_

So, for the next ten minutes he proceeded to clean and tidy the chambers using his magic, but still...nothing. He had even let a broom fly past Arthur, soon followed by some laundry, which placed itself in the clothes basket; still not even a twitch. Now, out of chores, and eyebrow raised higher than Gaius ever managed, Merlin returned to Arthur's side and watched as he calmly finished the last of his breakfast.

The prince then slowly got up and surveyed his now spot clean chambers before saying...

"I'll need my festive clothes for the feast tonight, see to it that they are cleaned. Also, polish my sword and Merlin, stop slacking off."

"I'm not. I just cleaned your whole room!" exclaimed Merlin affronted.

"No, your magic did, you just stood there looking stupid as always. And I should probably decrease your salary seeing as your magic does all the work..."

"Oi, forget it prat, you're underpaying me as it is."

"Yeah right, idiot." And with that Arthur seemingly considered the conversation over and swept out of the room. Merlin, muttering to himself about supercilious princes, remained in the chambers and was glad that Arthur had at least forgotten to give him any more chores, when the prince's head popped back through the open door followed by a "Oh and muck out the stables and clean the knights boots, _all_ of them by **hand**." emphasizing the _hand_, before disappearing again.

Staring at the door in disbelief, Merlin narrowed his eyes and thought, 'That's it! Next time he can save his own condescending-ass. Or maybe donkey-ears would suit him well...hmm.' that would certainly deserve looking into...

Fin.

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